Thursday, January 19, 2006

Send in the Clowns

I’m very pleased to say Gene Wolfe has decided to write a story based on The Children's Hour from Halloween. (Yesterday’s post image is a detail from that piece.)Gene Wolfe is so very cool…. He’s so cool that when I sit next to him I feel cool too. The chapbook is coming from DreamHaven, is called Strange Birds and will be released for Balticon 40.

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I’m using a mix of hard green wax and a fairly firm modeling clay. (I get both from http://www.monstermakers.com/ . Good stuff, nice catalog.) The wax has a low melting point and hardens almost immediately---even faster in winter.I found it more difficult at first than soft clays like Fimo or even Plastilina, but keeping a bit of it warmed in a glue warmer, along with keeping tools warm there too, works.

The technique is a bit different, more carving than molding---so I’m using different tools. It has a low elasticity, so little stretch. Any techniques requiring stretching or pressing would have to be done quickly.

The advantage is that the hard clay holds even the sharpest edge detail well and can be finely finished. It’s nearly impossible to get this quality of original with softer clays. When using those, I’d have to make the clay original, make a ‘waste’ rubber mold, cast the figure in resin or wax hard enough to finish.

It’s a sort of trade off---. Personally, I prefer to put the time into sculpting the original, then casting it in the resin marble mix, which can be polished much like stone.It’s my preference for figurative pieces.

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So, yes, I’m making an attempt to take better care of myself. I’m told I’m horrible at it.I haven’t really wanted any sugar today, and I ate leaves twice.I’m not overly fond of leaves.

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There were some real zingers in the studio today. Ben and I were on fire.I mentioned that.He said that all it takes is a bit of misery in both our lives.

Send in the clowns.

************Tonight I have begun reading the file of what Bob Podrasky tells me are the best of the TINY STORIES, the project entries.

This is such a cool project. I'm enjoying the reading. I anticipate the work ahead. These weeks are and will be work intense. But then I'll play for a bit, put stuff back in my head and, like the Pretender, get up and do it again.

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Lisa Explains it all at Stainless Steel Droppings

Lisa is the creator of Poppets and other art. Talented authors tend to write stories about images she makes. At Strange Studios, in Palm Springs, California, she and fellow artist Benton Warren create fantastical kinetic works. This blog is about Poppets, life in the studio and other strange goings on.